"The economics of mesh networks is fascinating and holds out the promise of bringing basic Internet connectivity to all residents of a neighborhood at a minimal cost – and for some residents, at no cost. When I heard about Google's plans to bring gigabit fiber-optic Internet to a given number of communities in the United States, I started monitoring which communities had existing plans to roll out mesh networks.

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Collectives are also changing the way St. Louis connects. Spaces like Arch Reactor and Saint Louis Coworking — and networks like WasabiNet, which runs mesh Wi-Fi in the vicinity of Cherokee Street—now provide St. Louisans with low-cost ways to share ideas.